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Leeds United manager Daniel Farke claimed City keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma of feigning injury to "exploit the regulations" during their Premier League match at the Etihad

Leeds got off to the worst possible beginning with Phil Foden scoring within the first minute, before Josko Gvardiol doubled the hosts' lead before the interval

Second-Half Revival Denied

However, Leeds rallied following the break after a change of tactics and formation, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin netting straight away following the restart

And with Manchester City clearly having difficulty to deal with the changes moments before Lukas Nmecha levelled, home keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma collapsed to receive treatment, allowing boss Pep Guardiola to call his players to the sideline and deliver fresh instructions during the 120 seconds play was halted for

"Everyone knows why he went down," Farke commented

"This isn't the obvious issue. Why he fell it was obvious. It is within the regulations. It is clever. If I like it? If it's within the spirit of sportsmanship? If it ought to be like this I will keep to myself. It is for the governing bodies to determine a solution"

Manager's Disappointment

"I questioned the assistant referee at this moment if you want to take action. Our options are limited"

"If we don't educate our footballers in football what to do in regards of sportsmanship and sportsmanship and everything and if we just try to exploit regulations and actually do a fake injury in order to do an extra team talk, it is not what I approve of personally. But if it is within the regulations I can't complain"

Stoppage-Time Winner

Phil Foden's injury-time winner condemned Leeds to a sixth consecutive defeat in seven Premier League fixtures to leave them eighteenth in the division, with only bottom club Wolverhampton having notched less top-flight strikes this term

Tactical Adjustments

Nonetheless, Daniel Farke, who has been questioned for a absence of boldness especially around substitutions, was almost vindicated for a courageous decision at the interval that nearly turned around their situation

Talking to television pundits, Foden, stated that his team were only capable to reorganize after Pep Guardiola's touchline conference with his players

"During the break we were in command. Second half they came out, pressed us a lot more aggressively, they put a pair up top and altered the formation a bit," said Phil Foden

"We genuinely had difficulty to gain control of the match. We got together on the side of the field and changed a few things and it improved from there. That little break was crucial to make corrections"

Encouraging Aspects for Leeds

The most recent occasion Leeds lost four consecutive Premier League matches was in 2022-23, when their campaign ended with demotion

Nevertheless, while Daniel Farke stated that "their main emotion is frustration", their second-half performance provided sufficient evidence to suggest they are able of arresting their current run and climbing back up the table

"Displaying such a performance should give us lots of belief. If we show such determination and unity we have a great opportunity to win the results," Farke added

"We had the belief before the game, during the game and after the encounter. Or else you cannot respond with a performance like that. We have great togetherness and fighting spirit in the locker room"

Expert Analysis

Commenting on radio analysis, ex- Celtic attacker Chris Sutton remarked: "Everybody anticipated it to be a straightforward victory for City, but it has been far from comfortable in this second half"

"Leeds United can derive a lot from this display with the manner they have played in this second period"

"Then came Daniel Farke's changes, who is frequently questioned for not being as responsive as he ought to be. Dominic Calvert-Lewin came on and roughed up the Manchester City centre-backs"

"It looked like it might be a huge turning point in Leeds United's season, but Manchester City found a bit of brilliance. They got away with one this evening"